[laughter] lock them in. >> most songwriters say their songs are like children, but do you have a favorite song that you have written? >> that one. that one, i think. ♪ there's a song they sing when they take to the highway and the song they sing when they take to the sea maybe you can believe it it might help you to sleep and singin' seems to work fine for me and rockabye old sweet baby james ♪ [applause] yeah, that is my favorite.

>> do you still write your songs down with paper and pencil? >> yes, i do. i have always carried a little recording device of some sort. they used to be pretty big, but now they are quite small, and i always carry a pen and paper, and i am ready if something occurs to me. >> you mentioned merle travis. what other musicians? >> ry cooder is my favorite guitar player, but there are many others to choose from. there was an album that was a formative for me. "paradise and lunch." there was a guy coming up called tom rush who played here at the cellar door, and he played in

boston at the 47. i really pattern myself after, just a guy with a guitar, full position, unapologetic. -- falcon musician. unapologetic folk musician. and i would say wouldtwo and the beatles. >> what do you think of current pop music? >> you know, i guess i do not like it a whole lot. [laughter] [applause] >> i guess i don't like it a whole lot. >> what would we find -- >> i sound just like my dad. there are great people out there, i know it. and i don't mean to condemn it but i think it's passed me by a little bit. i still have a wonderful career

and a beautiful audience that i really love but the spotlight is elsewhere now and i'm a known quantity now. and that's fine with me to play out this hand. but i don't pay a whole lot of attention to -- i never did listen much to the radio. when i was a kid, i did. i don't listen to music much. kim works with the boston symphony and we get a lot of classic cal music in the house. we have 11-year-old twin boys and they have their preferences, maybe it's because they're playing most of the popular music i'm hearing in the house i have such a negative take on it. >> do you have an ipod? >> no, an ipad.

>> do you listen to music on there? >> no, i listen on cd and vinyl. >> they have said taylor swift is named after you. what do you think of her music? >> i like her music. and i like the name too. i do think she is a creative singer song writer. she's a remarkable marketing phenomenon and if she can survive that. and it's a hard thing to survive i think. but she seems to have a very clear head on her shoulders and i think if anyone can, she can make it through and continue to evolve as an artist because it's sort of the marketing hit is if you're lucky enough to be successful, that particular

passage that an artist has to make, if he's lucky enough or she's lucky enough can be a real jarring life changing event. it can really shake you up, going from being very private to very public. >> many people have said daniel day lewis portrayal of lincoln in the current film remind them of you. do you have any comment on that? >> i've seen the movie and it doesn't look like me to me but i live in here. john williams who is a dear friend and this generation's remarkable musician and composer, john wanted me to play that part. he actually stood up for me there and suggested me at one point.

that was never going to happen. i don't know. i'm flattered. of course, everybody loves lincoln, i do. but i don't see other than the fact that we're both tall and somewhat skinny, he speaks much better in public than i do. >> is there a role you would like to play? >> no, this is fine. it is very unusual. [laughter] i've spent my life being myself for a living and i think more than really -- more than anyone else i think i know. i think there are performers who develop and assume a character that they then play for the public.

but i don't know anyone who is as much themselves publicly for a living as i am. so it's been an interesting ride. but i don't think i'm qualified to really understand it well, no. >> several people sent this question up so i feel obligated to ask, do you know who carly simon was singing about in you're so vain and will you share that with us? >> i think it's warren beatty. >> and he says not. >> that's what my information was but again that information has not been updated for 40 years. [applause] >> now that that the turnpike extends past the city to the airport, any thoughts about revising the song? >> you mean the turnpike no

longer ends in boston, it goes all the way to summer set, no. what town is the airport in? stockridge to chelsea. >> that's got a ring to it but it doesn't rhyme. that's the thing is the internal rhyme. that song has four rhyming schemes going at once. it's got to be boston unless they take it to austin, texas. [applause] >> i want to thank all of you for joining us this afternoon.

i want to remind you of our next lunch on december 18, we have leon panetta, i'm sure if you have some advice on how to solve the fiscal cliff, i'm sure he'd like to hear that. >> while you are writing your next song, i'd like to present you with your coffee mug. it might give you some inspiration. >> thank you so much. [applause] >> i want to thank the national press club staff including the journalism broadcast center for organizing today's event. and i was wondering if you had one last song you'd like to sing us out on. [applause]

>> do you want to sing? >> come on up. >> can she borrow your stool? >> this is my wife kim and here is the song we sing to our twin boys. actually about two years ago, we went in to sing them to sleep with this lullaby and we got the guitar out and sat down on the side of the bed and we were about to play the opening chords and rough fuss looked up at me and said you know dad, we don't have to do this anymore. [laughter] ♪ sonny, sure you're

thinking now but the morning is slowly r ising so sober must be spinning round and i still love you would you close your eyes you can close your eyes it's all right ooh i don't know love songs i can't sing 'em true anymore but i can sing this song for when you can sing this song when i'm gone

be longon't before another day have an we're going to good time and non one is going to take that time away you can stay as long as you like on these -- close your eyes you can close your eyes it's all right and i don't know no love song anymoresing the blues sure, but i can sing this song and you can sing this song

♪en i'm gone she's a game gal. [laughter] [applause] >> goodbye and thank you very much. [captioning performed by national captioning institute] [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2012]

>> coming up on c-span, two staffers for the late senator robert byrd told about his career in politics. then the congressional gold medal ceremony for arnold palmer and a discussion about women in leadership with nbc news's andrea mitchell. >> the taping was top-secret. that means the only people who knew for certain of its existence it was my father, his secretary, and the secret service agent who installed it. that is until president nixon made white house taping it famous and infamous and other presidential recording systems were revealed. against the backdrop of watergate, the concept of taping can seem problematic, but it is beyond doubt that this is a

unique and invaluable historical resources. on these tapes, history unfolds in real time in the most dramatic, possible way. we hear the confrontations of the civil rights movement and the life and death decisions being made during the cuban missile crisis. >> caroline kennedy on the 1962 recordings of the late president in the oval office. that this tonight as we continue through the holiday on c-span2. >> the west virginia state society honored senator robert byrd last month. the longest living senator in history, robert died in -- robert byrd died in 2010. we will hear from two of his staffers. >> the first speaker is ira shapiro. author of "the last great senate." he played important roles in

foreign intelligence surveillance and the completing of the metrorail system. during the clinton administration, he served as a leading u.s. trader and earned the rank of staffman. -- ambassador. he was described as an antidote and he promised to deliver. he practiced international trade law and washington. on behalf of the west virginia state society, i would like to introduce ira shapiro. thank you. [applause] >> thank you for the kind introduction. thank you to the society for giving me the chance to be here. thanks to mike who did so much to organize the event. he is an old friend. thank you, mike. i'm delighted to be here today

with corbin. -- david corbin. we have two books that talk about robert byrd from different perspectives. my book is basically about the senate and the last great senate as i refer to it. senator byrd was the majority leader during the period of time i wrote about. it gives you an ensemble sense of how the senate works. the book originated in 2008. i had been in the senate in the 1970s and 1980s. by 2008, i decided the senate had become utterly unrecognizable to me. polarized and paralyzed, really quite dysfunctional. i decided to write a book about the senate when it was great, specifically when i was there. [laughter] when you do something like

that, you have a certain risk factor. was it really great? was it only seem great because i was there or because i was young? fortunately, the answer turned out to be, no. i discovered something that was there in plain sight, but had not been noticed. if you googled the words "great senate" you'll find nothing other than my book. [laughter] nobody had ever noticed a great senate. certainly there are great senators and great filibusters, but a great senate had never been thought about. the reader reviews said of the book said today's senate is not a very good, but in 1960s and 1970s, we had a great senate. i'm delighted they agreed with me. from about 1963 to 1980, we had

a great senate in america that was in the forefront of everything. from holding president nixon accountable and watergate, every a congressman of the senate. in the middle of that senate was robert c. byrd. by the way, for those of you who want to write a book, having a publisher is a good thing. writing a book looking for a publisher later is not a good thing. i was very fortunate. i publisher said to me, all right, we will let you write the book. it cannot be a memoir. all right. can i pop up in the book occasionally? yeah, twice. the publisher said, it is

narrated history. you need to tell a story. ok. i can tell stories. you cannot walk through this whole 18 year period. find a way to tell it. i said, all right. i decided to tell a story from the late 1970s leading up to that 1980s. america is beginning its third century. we have a new president, jimmy carter. we also have two new senate leaders, robert byrd and -- howard baker. by the way, i'm an honorary member of the west virginia state society. i have worked for robert byrd and rockefeller. i came face to face with byrd in writing this book.

as many of you know, senator byrd was truly a remarkable story. the senate has always had its share of wealthy people, but it has also had people that have come from ordinary circumstances or from poverty. no one ever can further than robert byrd. he was born in north carolina. his mother died shortly after his birth. he was raised by his mother's sister. he was renamed robert carlyle byrd. he grew up on the edge of poverty. his rise was astonishing.

he was driven primarily by this incredible will that he had and thirst for education. he was embarrassed to did not finish college, so he finished law school instead. he went on and on. the idea of senator byrd as majority leader of the senate is quite remarkable. he came into the senate with the great class of 1958. they set the foundation for what i call the great senate that came later, the progressive senate. it was a democratic landslide that year. he was undeniably the most conservative of senators elected. philip hart, a whole -- whole

flood of liberal senators and then there was robert byrd. it was not his youthful membership that was the issue. in later years, he remained against civil rights, which was essential thing the senate was about in the 1960s. he opposes civil rights act in 1964 and 1965. he opposed thurgood marshall when he was nominated. senator byrd was so conservative on some of these issues that in 1971,richard nixon toyed with putting him on the supreme court just to show the senate what he could do. senator byrd moderated his views all the time. he got lucky. issues got resolved on civil rights. legislatively. things moved on. senator byrd gets on the leadership ladder and he rises. he becomes the whip in a stealth campaign.

the idea of robert byrd as leader goes from being inconceivable to virtually inevitable. he has earned his way up to be leader. at the beginning of my book, he becomes leader and replaces mike mansfield, who is sort of an icon. no one thinks byrd can replace mike mansfield. but the truth is, no one thought that mike mansfield could replace lyndon johnson. that is certain the way things work. as my book starts, the first chapter is about byrd. it is entitled "the grind." he is hard-working. senate mechanic, etc.

robert byrd has a concept of what a senate leader should be. he immediately moves on the concept. he hates to be referred as the senate mechanic. it got him to the leader's role, but he wants to get into foreign policy. one of the first things he does is he reaches out to one of the senator fulbrights. he gets a call from senator byrd's office. they ask him to come in interview. he is stunned. he does not think senator byrd cares about foreign policy. senator byrd convinces him he wants to be involved in foreign policy.

as the book unfolds and as i learned about it, it is amazing to see how strong he is on foreign policy almost from the beginning. he plays this phenomenally important role. in the panama canal treaties. it is not just who has the votes, but he understands the substance better than anyone else. they all went down to panama, but he leads one of the first trips. he goes down there and he learns the panama issues. he brought the same dedication to every issue. one thing i say in the book is he knew that just being leader did not make you a great senator automatically. whoever heard of scott lucas and william nolan, senate majority leaders before lyndon johnson. you never heard of them because

they did not do anything. robert byrd brought that extra dimension to it, the foreign policy knowledge. the second thing about him as leader was he really understood the importance of a relationship with the president of the united states. byrd was ambivalent about jimmy carter. there were some problems with him. carter was an outsider. he did not really like politics or the hill. senator byrd regarded his role as leader of the senate, but also a person who basically was an advisor to the president, helped the president, he improved his programs. the book shows senator byrd helping carter through virtually every issue from the

panama canal treaties to the energy legislation where byrd worked tirelessly on it to get it done without a filibuster. he had the sense that the senate leader should have a special relationship with the president and that is the way the system was supposed to work. of course, the most important in for the senate leader is to make the senate work. byrd knew the senate rules better than any person that ever lived. he lived in dealing with the notion of the fear of a paralyzed senate. he wanted to think that the rules worked, but he knew that in fact jim allen of alabama had cracked the code. he had figured out how to have this filibuster so the senate could be tied up in paralyzed. robert byrd like to think you

have to be an expert to do this, but it turned out you do not need to be an expert at all. a couple of senators did not know the rules and they tied the senate up. byrd struggled with the notion of how to keep the unique character of the senate without having a paralyzed? in that regard, he championed rules change. he got some done in 1979. he knew that the senate rules do not work. if they were not fixed, eventually the senate would become paralyzed. he dealt with it through his own skill and through rule changes. the last thing i will say about senator byrd as a leader, and it is very important about the senate and the late senate's dysfunction, he was

fundamentally not a partisan. he was a democrat, no question about it. the senate was not partisan. he treated people evenhandedly. the dealings he had with baker are quite extraordinary to read. howard baker, both of byrd and baker are on the cover of my book because they're both great senators. it is not just symbolic. they really worked together. they never surprised each other, but they did more than that. they work together to make the senate work. that there was a filibuster, they work together to work around it. there were not many filibusters, but they fundamentally were not partisans. there are many stories about

senator byrd in the book that i will not go into. i would rather you read the book. chrysler, the senate is trying to bail out chrysler. there is a hot tempered effort from connecticut, a republican. he is really against it and threatening to filibuster. they cannot talk him out of it. robert byrd all of a sudden leaves the senate floor unannounced. he startles everybody there. he goes in to talk to him. he comes on the filibuster is over. ryker is satisfied and has had enough time to talk. that is the way they did things.

i had the opportunity to speak at a lot of places. i have to say it is a a lot nicer here. you do not have to get on an airplane. it is nice to be here. recently i had a special occasion. i was in knoxville, tennessee. senator baker was not in good health. he is 87. he came to the program. it was a wonderful occasion. for me, it is impossible to think about senator byrd and senator baker without thinking about our current leaders. there are contrast.

senator reid and senator mcconnell did not create the hyper partisan senate. they inherited it, basically. they certainly have not done anything to reverse the situation. instead it has gotten worse. i think senator mcconnell really bears the special responsibility. he is the architect and the symbol of a policy of absolute obstruction. the obstruction began at the beginning of president obama's presidency. at a time of absolute national economic crisis,it is utterly impossible for me to conceive of senate leaders that i grew up with being as different as it can be from howard baker or any of the great leaders.

i think it is contrary to the way that the senate worked when it worked at its best. the senate is supposed to be the national mediator. that is a place where the parties come together and reconcile and not inflame differences. it did not work that way at all in the past -- in a long period of time. the frustration i have the senator mcconnell is number one, he deepened the problem. he has driven the senate to a much lower point. number two, he knows better than that. if you read an interview he did with politico, he said that he rises above partisanism. he mentioned his role model is

senator john sherman cooper, a great republican senator. really a great statesman. he knows what you are supposed to do in the senate, but it was simply a conscious strategy not to do it. i think that is a real problem. it has injured the senate. it is damaged the country. assuming we have a deeply divided country and a very political culture, that is what the senate is supposed to rise above. that is what they are therefore. they are not there to reflect the differences. scott fitzgerald famously wrote, there are no second acts in lives. that is on. -- rahm. -- that is wrong.

we have all had second acts and second chances, etc. i hope that this congress will do a good second act and be more like john sherman cooper or the great howard baker or the great robert byrd we celebrate today. thank you. [applause] >> i neglected to mention prior to the presentation is that we will take some question and answers at the end. it is my pleasure to now introduce to you david corbin, author of " the last great senator." david corbin served as senator byrd's speechwriter. corbin is the editor and author of life, work, and rebellion in

the southern west virginia mines. he received his phd from the university of maryland. please join me in welcoming david corbin. [applause] >> thank you. thank you to the west virginia state society for hosting this event. i really appreciate the opportunity. thank you to ira for the great title. [laughter] i've been playing around with my book for a few decades. he was the senate minority leader at the time. ira started in 2008, but he came up with the perfect title. appreciate it.

i came to work and frankly, i do not know what to expect. i'm from west virginia. as an undergraduate, i was heavily involved in anti-war. i was engaged in some protests and a demonstration for the vietnam war. i started to work for byrd and had no idea how he would respond with. i was one of those liberal protesters he he is always denouncing. one time he called the protests a "human circus." i was working for him.

there was a story of how a west virginia and and my boss were standing up for the crew. i know there are efforts today to portray reagan. -- as this great president. if anybody believes it, read chapter 9 of my book. had it not been for byrd, the whole thing would have been a disastrous administration. at any rate, byrd was nothing like i had read about. i learned there is so much misinformation about him. i also learned that he is the most complex person.

there is no simple analysis to the man. the more i researched, i realized a book about him could go in many directions. there was so much. you could write a book on any aspect. his role in west virginia, what he did in west virginia. as ira has done, his senate leadership is a book in itself. his will on the national stage. there are two guiding objectives for the book -- i wanted a book that would place byrd and give him his rightful place in american history. think about it. no other person has been involved in so much history on the stage for so long a period

as byrd. or 60 years, he was involved in every significant event. this goes back to the cold war, vietnam, the civil rights movement, watergate. kennedy's new frontier, johnson 's great society. the list goes on forever. iran-contra. all it is historical events. make no mistake about it, he is being left out of history. one example of the hundreds of books on nixon and watergate come not one of them mentions byrd's exposing the watergate cover-up. it was recognized at the time that byrd was the unsung hero of watergate. he was never given credit for

his role in exposing the watergate cover-up. not only exposing the watergate coverup,he was also the one who connected the watergate to the white house and the oval office itself. john f. kennedy and the kennedy administration, not one of them talks about the relationship that byrd and kennedy established. most of us talk about the byrd opposition to the kennedy primary. you have a simple explanation. the guy was a bigoted anti- catholic hillbilly. wrong. once kennedy gets the nomination, byrd goes out campaigning for him. he goes down to the southern baptist in texas and they were serious for lyndon johnson

being on the ticket with hannity, who was catholic. -- kennedy, a catholic. both johnson and john f. kennedy won their victory in the 1960s election with robert byrd's help in north carolina and texas. the second objective -- i realize byrd is a legend. outside of washington, d.c., he is little loan, much less respected. -- little known, much less respected. that is something i want to correct across the country.

i knew history biography would not serve the purpose. there is an effort being made to portray byrd who gave nice speeches about the constitution. there is so much more to the guy. throughout his career, he was a fighter. he had to fight for everything he got. all the way to west virginia politics, he had to fight. there are some who say he never faced a tough opponent. that is ridiculous. despite opposition, he takes on say that two most powerful machines and he wins every election.

he gets to the u.s. senate, he climbs the leadership ladder and defeats prominent liberal senators. he selected the senate whip by ousting ted kennedy. he defeated former vice president of the united states, hubert. -- hubert humphrey. it is always a fight for byrd. had to fight for everything he got for west virginia. he had to fight. those appropriations did not come easy for him until that stage. [laughter] he had to fight. the trouble is, what direction to take the book in? how to convey these two

objectives? it came to me while sitting on the senate floor when he delivered his speech. to celebrate his 50 years of senate and the u.s. senate. the floor staff asked us to wait a few minutes since the senators were on their way there. they wanted to hear byrd talk. so, we waited a few minutes. as we were waiting,we discussed these incidents. he kept relating to the presidency. i worked with this president. he worked with jimmy carter. it started dawning on me -- the presidents. after the speech, it dawned on me -- no other person in american history has had an

impact on so many presidential administrations. he has impacted 11 presidents. and that is 1/4 of presidents in american history. think about it. over 60 years. i could achieve my major objectives by putting him on the stage and also try to make the book appeal to people outside of west virginia. but massachusetts may not buy a book on robert byrd, but they would on robert kennedy. -- to read about john f. kennedy. in the meantime they would learn a lot about robert byrd and how they work together. people in california may not buy a book on robert byrd, but they may buy a book on presidents. that is the reason i was so

happy when senator howard baker -- his endorsements -- there is written on the back, i hope this book is a must read about robert byrd and the american presidency. baker caught what i was trying to convey. i was trying to make byrd appealed to the people outside of west virginia. another objective is important insights into each presidential administration. the eisenhower chapter. historians portray the happy days and everybody liked ike. the country enjoyed eight years of what president nixon called republican prosperity. when you read my chapter, you read when robert byrd is trying to help west virginia.

which was suffering terribly this time. west virginia had extreme poverty. miners were out of work and byrd was trying to help the state. eisenhower kept vetoing. since the farewell address, there has been talk about the industrial complex. the new left tried to portray eisenhower as an anti- establishment liberal. it took me eight years to realize there was an industrial complex. it is a small point. but anyway, the kennedy administration talked about how they worked together. not one book mentions this. how well they worked together. a johnson-nixon administrations, think about this.

you have a liberal democrat, johnson, and the other was a conservative republican, nixon. byrd is friends with both of them and helps them to get legislation enacted. but when each of them crossed the line, the constitutional line,byrd goes after them hard. you can read the chapter when byrd goes after johnson. i think that was one of the reasons for johnson felt removal. -- johnson's removal. byrd certainly helps drive nixon out of office. when you cross a constitutional line, byrd goes after you. it did not matter whether he liked you or not. he will go after you if you cross that line. one of the greatest statements came from president clinton -- the memorial service for byrd in west virginia, this is where clinton said there is nothing he would not have done for you, meaning the people of west

virginia as long as you did not cross the constitutional line. a powerful statement. clinton picked up on robert byrd perfectly. one of the administration i talked about is the carter administration. workyou look at byrd's with president carter, you realize how much legislation is accomplished in those congresses. incredible. carter's failures are basically external. oil and cargo driving up inflation are beyond carter's control. -- oil embargo driving up inflation. three-mile island. but what carter and byrd did -- carter was a difficult person, but they were able to bring together. they got an enormous and our legislation enacted.

it was a truly successful administration legislatively. two cabinet agencies were formed during the carter years. the most important environmental laws we have today came out of the carter administration. carter enacted an energy program, which if reagan had not wiped out come would have saved us the problems you are having today. but reagan wiped it out. part of it was the synthetic fuels corp. that had the goal of creating 500 million barrels of oil a day. ira is correct to talk about the congress of the last great senate. byrd's first two terms as senate majority leader, it was byrd who made it happen.

i feel confident in, and robert byrd the last great senator. i thank ira for the title. thank you. [applause] >> at this time we will take a couple of questions. >> tell me, dave, what president did you enjoy writing about the most that senator byrd served with? >> kennedy. my two favorite people in history is robert byrd and john f. kennedy. i have always had an affection for kennedy. during the was a virginia primary -- if you know about that. everybody know about the west virginia primary? it showed the country that a catholic could carry west

virginia and could carry the nation. kennedy campaigned in the anbar. kennedy blanketed the state. he spoke in my home town. he went all over the state campaigning. i remember leaving my bike against a parking meter. after the speech, i went to get my bike. my bike was parked in the limousine where he was parked. i started asking questions. he looks at me and ask, where is nitro? he goes, nitro? i point, that way.

kennedy looks down and smiles. anyway, i have always had an affection for kennedy. politically as well as personally. byrd opposed kennedy in the 1960s primary. that is not where they established a relationship. when byrd was serving as a senator, there was a reference to the partnership. it was not until i wrote this chapter that i realized how close they were together. you will see it in the chapter, hopefully. >> i was struck by this quote by senator baker on the back on your book of how senator byrd and he made an agreement to work together to make the

senate operate efficiently. it was an agreement they never broke. how is that possible? >> they kept each other informed of everything they were doing. they fought on a couple issues. it is not that they do not fight or have differences. but they did keep each other informed. bob dole replaced howard baker as a speaker. he would do things on -- in secret. dole takes over baker as leader. but they kept baker informed. and -- they just work together and kept each other in touch of what the other was great to do. they still opposed each other at times.

the did work together. they kept no secrets. >> i always like to talk about byrd and baker. they really did epitomize the great senate and the way things worked at that time. the first two chapters of my book are entitled "the grind" and "the natural." he was a most natural politician you could come across. if senators voted based on secret ballot, baker would have won. they had a remarkable capacity for doing that. there is one incident in my book where i describe senator byrd.

senator byrd decides to crush two democrats. it is such an unusual act, it he gets the vice president in the chair and by a script that byrd has written, start ruling them out of order in a way that is quite contrary to the way the senate work. -- the way the senate works. there is a rebellion on the senate floor. everyone is going crazy and what robert byrd is doing even though they hate filibusters. one thing that was very striking, byrd made a surprise. he had told howard baker in all of the republicans, he had all of the leaders aware of exactly what he was going to do. it was a very impressive thing. on the back of my book is a funny story for those who like book stories. authors always like that. my publishers did a great job on the book. they sent me this cover and said everyone loves it.

nobody i have shown it to loves it. the reason is because it was a picture of two senators walking into a room with their backs to you. it was byrd and baker in transition in the 1980s. it is a very evocative picture, but it would have been a terrible cover. it is on the back cover of my book. they did really treat each other with extraordinary openness basically. >> ira, your book -- when he >> ira, your book -- when he competed for majority leader? >> it is a great incident. david is aware of it as well. senator byrd basically had all

of the votes lined up to be majority leader. senator humphrey was a beloved figure among democrats. he had an important habit of always reaching for the next rung. he was not very realistic about some of it. he was also sick in early 1977. he decided to stay in the challenge against robert byrd for the very last day and then he abruptly pulled out when he realized he could not win. robert byrd understood that a lot of senators loved humphrey. while he took leadership, he found a way to make concrete deputy pro-tempore. he gave him that leadership and diffused that feeling of running over humphrey in some way. it was a very good start.

>> do think there will be a culture change in the senate? one of the people who came in and spoke briefly talk about someone who was blind and had an eye seeing dog. the dog had never been on the senate floor before. senator byrd was the only person who objected. he wanted to have security on a dog entering the senate floor. that was retold to me. this person described this with a certain amount of, i could not believe he would do that. i view that as a body being

based on precedents. >> they would not let the staffer do it. they would not allow computers on the floor. >> i always say that things change. starting with the fact that the senate is televised. when i started in the senate, it was not televised. if senators and the staff wanted to know what was going on in the senate, you wandered over to the senate.

senators would go over and go to the committees in the morning and have lunch and then they wandered over to the senate. they hung out. they were on the floor or in the cloak room. there was a huge amount of social interaction, which is lacking now as we know. one is the technology and the other is the demand and fundraising. they spend so much time raising money and the do not have time to spend together. everything is different. nothing about the senate is better other than the influx of women. the fact that we have 20 now, which is a record, that makes a big difference. on the other hand, the hyper partisan senate is interesting.

a number of people have said over time, boy, the senators must not like your book. they're fine with the book. they do not think much of the senate. [laughter] the frustration is the same as the public's. my sympathy extends to a certain point. have the power to change it. it does not have to be the way that it is. >> i want to go back to a point that he made. what they leave out, it was a tough race. they gave the vote count and everything else. kennedy started working for five years to make sure byrd never becomes majority leader. he interviews a number of

people. he does not want to take byrd onto himself. he is looking for a person to take on. a lot of people are predicting humphrey's victory. he had tremendous support. it was not a given election for byrd. the great thing is byrd's election to senate majority leader five months later, humphrey goes on the floor and talks about what a great majority leader byrd is. this guy is great. ted kennedy comes out and says

the same thing. robert byrd is the best majority leader in the senate. i think it all began with the kennedy speech. he got done the environmental laws. >> i have a question for both of you getting back to the hyper partisanship of the senate now. this is why we speculate a little bit. how did you think senator byrd would respond now to the idea of changing the senate rules, especially around the use of filibuster?

>> i think it is clear that senator byrd would favor certain changes of the rules. he favored certain changes of the rules and got them done to shorten the amount of time of the filibusters. at the time he wanted to eliminate idea of filibustering motions. the thing that i really admire about senator byrd is that he loved the senate, but he was not blind to the problems. i think senator byrd would be among those who would come forward to find ways to try to put the filibuster back in the box so that you had -- so that a filibuster would be rare. it might people to come to the floor instead of indicating they will go to filibuster. i also think senator byrd would

be very angry at the way nominations are handled now. if you look at the numbers, they are quite startling. during the presidency of jimmy carter to george w. bush, 79- 93% of the residential nominees were confirmed. under president obama's administration, a discipline not right for the senate to just block nominations and never vote on them. but that has become part of the routine obstructure. i do not think robert byrd would have put up with that. that is a change. -- should be changed.

there is a story that illustrates so much of what david said about byrd being a complex figure. senator byrd was extremely complex. he is a very proud man. he was very sure and how he wanted to be treated. he had this relationship with carter. they worked together on a lot of things. that relationship was torn the night of the hostage rescue mission. senator byrd was in the white house that night at the oval office of carter. carter outlined the idea of the mission without telling byrd. that was such a betrayal, it was simply a horrible mistake by carter to have not told senator byrd, who had done so much for him.

that tore the relationship. >> byrd worked so hard for carter and for carter not to tell him, you're absolutely right. he went through 12 different military scenarios, and that was one. the next day he was furious internally. but his public persona, he supported the president in this crisis. he appeared cool, but people knew underneath he was livid about it. >> the misinformation about the national state, give us one example where senator byrd's role was underachieved or underreported or misunderstood

by america. >> i can give you a couple actually. one is personality wise. there is a race issue. if you take the facts out of context -- he did vote against marshall. he did not want a liberal activist on the u.s. supreme court. the constitution comes first. he wants strict interpreters who would adhere to the law. he voted against thurgood marshall.

he did not want a liberal activists. the race issues, too. he voted against the civil rights bill. back it up a little bit. 1960, the senate was considering of legislation to abolish coal tax. byrd voted against it. byrd tried to explain he was not opposed to the intent of the legislation, but it goes against the state rights. therefore, congress cannot step in and say -- byrd said to do it right. he said he could not vote on it

if it was going to be done this way. two years later, congress comes back with a constitutional amendment and byrd voted for it. he voted for it once they did it right with a constitutional amendment. he filibustered, it is true. there was a 14 hour filibuster. read through the thing. everyone points out him being racist. read throughout the filibuster. there is not one racial thing. the whole thing is basically constitutional law. he makes clear to make it right

before he can support it. he agrees that there should be no discrimination in the standards. the objective sought -- the objective here is a worthy one. he concurs with the objective. here he is talking about literacy tests. the constitution does not limit to that. he opposed them on that measure. it proposes two different ways to do this constitutionally. that is what is left out. congress could do that. he voted against that bill

because of the constitutional concerns. people said he voted against every civil rights measure. no, he didn't. he voted for 60 civil rights bill. the votes are numbered. when he's senate majority leader he gets two, if it hadn't been for about byrd. the more telling thing when you talk about a segregationist background, when he comes through the senate in 1959, only 19 offices in the entire congress are integrated. only 19 out of 534 offices are integrated. bird is one of the 19. he's one of the 19, when the naacp lawyers come to byrd's office to lobby for the civil rights bill and byrd opposes it, they're stunned to be greeted by african-american staffers.

when they submit the number of officers voting for the civil rights bill, totally white. byrd is one who integrated the capitol hill police force. he appointed patriot powers and appointed the first african- american and the second african-american to the police force. byrd is the one who integrated the capitol hill police force. the washington starr said how can you call this guy a racist? i can go on with example after example. if you pull things out of context, yeah, like his conservative background, when they talk about being racist conservative. the majority issues, that's why he voted that way, not because he's conservative, because the issue, as byrd said to me, i never changed, the issues changed. the very first thing when he's elected to congress, the very first thing he does is propose this legislation through the taft harley act, anti-union, anti-labor act.

that's his first legislation, before sputnik, even, he supports federal education. he supports a number of liberal issues. there are more conservative issues that he was voting for, but not because he's conservative. does that answer your question? \[laughter] >> a history lesson. >> the point i was trying to make is if you look at his total record, i can go on forever, but it's scattered throughout the book, in the obama chapter, there's an endorsement of president obama. everyone said he changed. no, he's always been consistent on this. >> any other questions? all right. well, thank you both so much for joining us. [applause] [captioning performed by national captioning institute] [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2012] >> tomorrow night, and

interviews with two and outgoing members of congress, dan burton talks about his 30 years in the house of representatives and kent conrad on his five terms in office. you can see both of those interviews on c-span beginning at 8:00 p.m. eastern. >> as president obama begins his second term, what is the most important issue he should consider? >> if you are in grades 6 through 12, make a video to be president. >> your chance to win the grand prize of $5,000, $50,000 in prizes. the deadline is january 8. >> this year, arnold palmer was awarded the congressional gold medal at a ceremony in his honor. leaders and fellow golfer jack nicklaus talked about his

contributions to the sport and his philanthropic work. from september, this ceremony is an hour 15 minutes. >> ladies and gentlemen, please welcome our honored guest, not members of the united states house of representatives, members of the united states senate, and the speaker of the united states house of representatives. [applause] ladies and gentlemen, the honorable john boehner. [applause] >> ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the united states capitol. i want to say how much i appreciate you all be near. -- being here. on behalf of my colleagues in the united states congress, i

will ask that you all join me in a moment of silence in tribute to ambassador stevens and the united states personnel who were killed in libya at this morning. thank you. since the days of the american revolution, congress has commissioned gold medals as the highest expression of appreciation for distinguished achievements. the first recipient was general george washington in march of 1776. today, we will present a congressional gold medal to arnold palmer of the commonwealth of pennsylvania. those of you who participate in these events regularly may notice the stage is set up a

little differently than usual. we thought it would be more fitting to do so on this side of the rotunda and honor some of the presidents of that arnie knew so well. president gerald ford used to say "you know arnie's army." few."p is "ford's president ronald reagan. and of course president eisenhower who did a lot for the game of golf. the story goes that eisenhower i asked to play the winner of the 1968 masters championship. that turned out to be arnold palmer. those 18 holes marked the beginning of a lasting friendship. welcome and thank you for being here, ladies and gentleman. [applause]

>> ladies and gentleman, please stand for the presentation of the colors by the united states armed forces guard, the national anthem, and the retirement of the colors. ♪ >> present!

>> ♪ o say can you see by the dawn's early light what so proudly we hailed at the twilight's last gleaming whose broad stripes and bright stars through the perilous fight o'er the ramparts we watched were so gallantly streaming? and the rockets red glare the bombs bursting in air gave proof through the night that our flag was still there o say does that star-spangled banner yet wave

o'er the land of the free and the home of the brave? ♪ >> forward! ♪

>> ladies and gentlemen, please remain standing as the chaplain of the united states house of representatives, reverend patrick conroy, gives the invocation. >> let us pray. god of the universe, but we give you thanks for the wonder of your creation. you have made us all little less than god, and yet give fitness and creativity and industry of our human family is, you have spread generously through a population of billions. but there are those whose creativity and industry lives them above the breath of humanity through two great achievements.

today we gather to honor one such person, arnold palmer, whose accomplishments and whose grateful generosity serve as an inspiration to us all. you alone know the multitude of platitudes uttered by many a pleasant walk ruined by a around of golf. many americans owe this to arnold palmer, whose extraordinary talents and daring drive popularized the sport. and never allow us to believe we -- led us to believe we could

strike that ball as well. you also know well the thousands of jokes generated by the fascinating diversion gifted to the world by the scots, many of them involving priests. it is a temptation to revisit some, but this is a moment to thank you, oh, god, not only for this man filled with athletic talent, more for the example of the depth of human spirit he has shown. arnold palmer has used his personal gift fitness and fortune to benefit thousands, focusing primarily on the health of children and their mothers, but in many other areas as well. we are grateful to him for this and for the example its sets for us all to participate as we

are able in the healing of your people. oh, god, help us to aspire to greatness not only in our handicaps, but also in our generosity as arnie has done. amen. >> please be seated. ladies and gentlemen, the representative of the 18th district of pennsylvania, the honorable tim murphy. >> good morning, mr. palmer, speaker, distinguished guests. i represent arnold palmer's home, where in addition to my congressional duties come up my main job is to make sure traffic slows down. [laughter] that is across the street from the latrobe country club.

you know what i mean. in the country club, there is a wonderful statement on the wall there that says "golf is simple and endlessly complicated. a child can play it well and a grown man can never master it." "it is almost a science, and yet if is a puzzle without an answer. it requires complete concentration and total relaxation. it satisfies the soul, fortifies the intellect. it is at the same time, rewarding and frustrating." mr. palmer, we had your golf partner's statute shipped in here, too. i think he just dropped the potter.

-- putter. [laughter] i thought -- i am not a great golfer, but as a psychologist, i understand the psychology of the sport in that sense. and i thought, since there's probably one our two call first -- golfers here, i can probably pass on to you what i think is the greatest golf device ever, and it is a story about mr. palmer and the manager of the detroit tigers. i was having dinner with jim, who is also known to have a colorful word or two when he speaks, and he told me about a round of golf he was playing with arnold palmer. he was chipping everywhere but the affair with. -- but the fairway.

i am sure that he had a word or two. after a few holes or so, mr. palmer said to him "jim, which you like a little advice?" think about that. if any of us had a moment where arnold palmer says to us "would you like a little advice?" it would probably be like the winds calmed. the clouds parted. a shaft of light shone down. "jim," he said. "you are not good enough to get mad." [laughter] that is reason enough to give this metal to mr. palmer, for giving the greatest golfing device ever. -- golf advice ever. in his home, he has a table with coins for every championship he has won. there is an empty spot.

he said, you never know when you'll have another claim to fill up one of those spots. mr. palmer, this is your day. thank you. [applause] >> ladies and gentleman, united states senator from the state of pennsylvania, the honorable patrick toomey. >> good morning and welcome to our guest of honor. we all know that's arnold palmer is a man of exceptional talent and success. one of the greatest golfers of all time. he even has his own soft drink named after him. it is hard to do better than that. he is also renowned for his generosity and kindness and his commitment to his community.

born in latrobe, pa., he continues to call it home. he is famous for saying that your home town is not where you are from. it is who you are. this is not just something he has said. is a principle he has lived by. some many local institutions have benefited enormously from his generosity. the arnold palmer regional airport. a cancer survivor himself, he is actively involved in supporting medical institutions. there are many. the arnold palmer hospital for children, the winnie palmer hospital for women and babies and others. all the contributions he has made it were the product of a

dogged work ethic and stubborn determination. he has the same on the wall of his office that gives us insight into his approach for life. whether he is out on the golf course or in a business meeting or enjoying time at home, his life is defined by a uniquely optimistic determination. the column is called the man who thinks he can and i want to share a few lines with you. success begins with a fellows will it is all in your state of mind if you think you are outclassed, you are you have to think high to rise life's battles do not always go to the stronger or faster man but sooner or later the man who wins is the man who think he can. arnold palmer symbolizes love for his family and a desire to give back to the community he has come from.

i understand that monday was your birthday, so i say happy birthday and congratulations. [applause] >> ladies and gentlemen, the representative from the 43rd district of california, joe baca. [applause] >> mr. speaker, leader pelosi, senator mcconnell, senator reid, i would like to thank the speaker who allowed us to have this event, and speaker pelosi.

between the both of you, we had bipartisan working together. thank you very much. i am very proud to be here. we are here today to recognize a legend. a legend, a giant amongst golfers throughout the world. arnold palmer'lf one history will eve remember, and all of us can go back and look. he has set an example for many individuals who aspire to become doctors or professional golfers, because it was not just about winning the golf tournament.

it was also about giving back to our communities. and, arnold, not only is applauded come up at caring individual for is family. he set an example for many individuals who want to get into the game of golf, who want to be role models. he is my champion. he is my role model. not just because he won the u.s. amateur in 1954 and not just because he won a total of 92 professional events, including four wins at the masters, two wins at the british open, one at the u.s. open. not only because he played in six ryder cups and help the united states to victory in the ryder cup, which we have coming up, and the presidents cup. his passion for the game is an

example of sportsmanship, and i say sportsmanship with the highest caliber for anyone who wants to get in the game. because he has been a supporter of first tee and what it stands for. honesty and integrity become very important. yes, arnold is an inspiration to make. -- to me. i want to quote him. he once said that it was not the scientific clubs that are being made today. speaker boehner, everyone has one of these clubs. [laughter] arnie said, "it is not the clubs in the person's hand. it is the person who does the job with the club." a lot of the time we think if we buy the equipment it will

make us a better golfer, but it is still the individual. he is an example to all americans in every imaginable way. he was born in latrobe, pa. in 1929. was celebrated his 83rd birthday on monday. he learned golf from his father, deacon palmer, who was a professional groundskeeper at latrobe country club. he succeeded his brother as a superintendent at the club. he began playing at the age of four. wow. and by the age of seven, he broke 70. some of those are still trying to break 70. he served his country with honor in the coast guard for three years.

thank you for being a veteran, serving our country. after that, he went to wake forest university. he remained a devoted husband, father, grandfather, who not only cares for his family, but also other families during times of struggle. arnold believes in giving back. giving back to those who have helped him, caring about others, especially the lives of many individuals. arnold palmer served as the honoree national chairman of the march of dimes birth defects foundation for 20 years. he helped found the arnold palmer hospital for children and women in orlando in 1980.

he also helped found the winnie palmer hospital for women and babies and the arnold palmer prostate center. we are recognizing him for being a humanitarian and what he did. arnold palmer is also love to round of world for his great work as a businessman, and of course as was mentioned earlier, the arnold palmer tea. it probably helped many individuals who were stuck at the 19th hole. now they can drink tea and drive safely home. the very first golf course he

was ordered -- i say ordered to make -- when he was in the coast guard was a nine-hole golf course while serving their. -- there. since then he has built and designed over 300 golf courses. arnold has been loved by many. his fans know him as arnie's army. amongst his biggest fans, his good friend president dwight eisenhower. in fact, for a lot of us to do not know and do not have the opportunity, he appeared and spoke at a joint session in congress. how many other individuals get to speak at a joint session in congress in 1990? arnold also played golf with president george -- gerald ford, george w. bush, and bill clinton.

arnold even appeared on "the ed sullivan show." and on a personal note, i have an opportunity to play golf with arnie along with my son, joe baca, jr., and we had an opportunity to walk backwards and play, and let me tell you, walking that course and playing with him, it was about a human being, a person who demonstrated caring about individuals. it did not matter where you came from. it was the fact that he treated you like a human being and we were all special to him. let me tell you. arnold is a genuine person with a great sense of humor. he is a considerate man with compassion in his heart for others. although he does not feel comfortable being called the king of golf, he truly is the king of golf.

arnold palmer is royalty, royalty in the eyes and hearts of those he has helped. we thank you, arnold palmer, for all that you have done in making others' lives a lot better and being that role model and serving our nation. you are a true american who deserves to be honored with the congressional gold medal. i thank you. god bless you and god bless america. [applause] >> ladies and gentlemen, the united states senator from the state of colorado, the honorable mark udall. >> good morning. let me start by thanking the speaker, leaders reid, mcconnell, and pelosi.

i have to say to joe baca, i think the only time we will break 70 is when we turn 70 years old. i want to set the record clear. he is one of the best golfers in the congress. that is like saying you're one of the best surfers in nevada. i want to make a confession. my confession as i am addicted to golf. i also want to tell you i blame arnold palmer and jack nicklaus for that addiction, because i watched them in 1960 in one of the greatest u.s. open tournament of all time. you know who finished first with a marvelous bar in a still difficult hole. it was the man who finished

second who went on to have a fantastic career as well, and he is here with us. but golf has taught me more than i can share. it is a game that cannot be won. but it is a game that can be played throughout your life. you'll learn to call penalties on yourself. it is a game for the ages. arnold, jack, i want to thank you for helping me become addicted to a game that has taught me so much. i want to tell you i got in trouble after that u.s. open. i went into the garage. i started swinging at balls in the yard, which meant they would go into other people's yards. but i was hooked. and you think about golf in two ways. let politics, you can have two

kinds of days. bad days and even worse days. [laughter] i am a skier. i have never had a bad day skiing or on the golf course. of course, if you break your leg. but what wonderful, wonderful people we have here today. there is an old quip. what is the difference between golf and politics? the answer is in golf you can't improve your lie. [laughter] arnold palmer, thank you for being such a gracious and tumble engaged american. -- and humble and engaged american. we are in your debt. you have earned the respect and admiration of millions of people

all over the world. i have served on the armed services committee. you of become a general in more ways than one. arnie's army's battle against prostate cancer has been so effective. i am truly honored to be part of today. i would like to end on a couple notes. as i mentioned, golf is the only sport where you call infractions on yourself. perhaps those of us in the congress should think about mr. palmer's example. we can call more infractions on ourselves and play the political and policy balls where they live. -- as they lie. every two years in the world of golf, the ryder cup. in the end, we all played for the red, white, and blue team. i am honored to be here with you

today. [applause] >> ladies and gentlemen, golf legend, philanthropist, and goodwill ambassador, mr. jack nicklaus. [applause] >> hello, speaker boehner, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen. arnold will tell you when you get to our age, i need a lot of people. -- you meet a lot of people. you begin conversations with "i remember when." it is not uncommon for someone to say a "i remember you in the 1960 u.s. open. i was wearing a green shirt. you waved at me."

the only proper answer is "how could i forget?" there are even more moments that i will never forget, moments that i hope provide a glimpse into the charismatic golfer, and man of unshakable character, father, grandfather, and great-grandfather that you are honoring today. and he is simply a good friend to me. when i first saw arnold palmer hit a golf ball, i was just 14 years old. i had just come off the golf course in ohio playing a practice round. it was pouring down rain. as i went by the practice tee, there was one person on the practice tee. i stood there and watched him. i did not know who he was. kind of quizzical looking at

this strong guy with big hands and broad shoulders, hitting these short irons, driving them into the rain. and i watched for a while and i said, man, is that guy strong. i wonder who he is. at the club house i asked who he was. "that is our defending champion arnold palmer." i remember four years later, the first time i've played -- the first time. we had a four-man exhibition that the. -- held in athens, ohio. arnold had a fear the. -he shot a course record of -- had a fair day. he shot a course record of .62. i remember when we played in an event together for the first time.

i was a 22-year-old rookie. arnold won the tournament. he just knicked me by 12 shots there. he knew i had a chance to finish second. he put his arm around my shoulder and he said "relax. this is not a hard par 5. you can birdie it. take your time." here was arnold, trying to help young guy while winning the tournament himself. that is the arnold palmer i will never forget. my first major, 50 years ago this summer. i was a little 22-year-old with blinders on, not realizing i was in the backyard of the great arnold palmer. having no clue. but i do remember we tied for

the tournament. before the playoff, arnold came over to me. it was customary in those days that the winner of the playoff received the mandate of the playoff. and he asked, would you like to split the date today? -- the gate today. here i was, a rookie. i really appreciated it. i'll never forget. i am going to fast forward a little bit, about 50 years. arnold and gary player and i played an event down in texas in may. it may be the last time we would ever play competitively together. we got to the last green, and we chose a hole about 25 feet from the whole. arnold putted first.

he thought he won the u.s. open and the masters for the fifth time. well, you know, to the delight of arnold, to the delight of us, and of course all of arnie's army. went wild. the manager of ing put together matches and exhibitions all over the world. we traveled together, laughed together, play together and remained close friends. whether it was oakmont or many other times we competed, arnold always treated me as a competitor, but more importantly as a friend. i am honored to still call him a dear friend 50 years later. we have competed in numerous events. everything from majors to endorsements, a golf course design, you name it.

we have competed. but i promise you, if there was ever a problem, i knew arnold had my back and i knew i had his. that is an arnold palmer i will never forget. arnold palmer was the every day man's hero. from a modest upbringing, arnold embodied the hard- working strength of america. arnold is one of the game's all- time greatest competitors, and he came along when golf needed him most. he played a game we could all appreciate. people love when he played from the rough, not like they did come up but they could only dream they could recover like he did. when tv first embraced the game

of golf, they have a swashbuckling hero in arnold. together, we won just over $10 million in our career. today's players make that in a year. we could not be happier for the. -- for them. but they should all thank arnold palmer. they need to understand what are no bid to grow the game,-- what arnold did to grow the game, popularize it, and the foundation he created. became has given some much do arnold palmer. he has given back some much more. for years now everyone in the room will be saying they remember when arnold palmer won a congressional gold medal. i hope they will never forget why he earned a congressional gold medal. [applause]

>> ladies and gentlemen, the singer-songwriter vince gill will now perform "you've got a friend." >> that is a pretty tough act to follow right there. [laughter] i just want to say thank you for the personal invitation from arnie to come sing for your great, great award. you received this award because you are a gentleman, because you have earned it, and you deserve it. you are the most beloved man in the history of sports in my eyes.

god bless you. [applause] ♪ when you're down and the troubled and you need a helping hand and nothing, whoa, nothing is going right close your eyes and think of me and soon i will be there to brighten up even your darkest nights

you just call out my name and you know where ever i am i'll come running to see you again winter, spring, summer, or fall all you have got to do is call and i will be there, yeah, yeah, yeah you've got a friend ♪ ♪ if the sky above you should turn dark and full of clouds

and that cold north wind should begin to blow keep your head together and call my name out loud i'll come running, my friend you just called out my name and you know where ever i am i'll come running to see you again winter, spring, summer, or fall

all you have to do is call and i will be there ain't it good to know that you have got a friend? they will hurt you, desert you take your soul if you let them don't you let them you just call out my name ♪and you know wherever i am ♪i will come running again.you

♪winter, spring, summer, or fall ♪ ♪all you've got to do is call ♪ ♪and i'll be there ♪ ♪you've got a friend ♪ ♪you've got a friend ♪ [applause] >> ladies and gentlemen, the democratic leader of united states house of representatives, the honorable nancy pelosi. [applause]

>> good morning. speaker, leaders reid and mcconnell. today when congress bestows the congressional gold medal on arnold palmer, we will be honoring a living legend. he is an icon of american sports and a success in all of his endeavors. a humanitarian, businessman, philanthropist. he personifies the american dream, the idea that anyone can travel as far as their talent will carry them. we think him for his service in the coast guard, for protecting that american dream for all americans.

born to humble beginnings and raised in latrobe, pennsylvania, arnold rose from blue-collar roots to becoming the king, the king of golf. as king of golf, he raised up arnold's army. he always demonstrated etiquette, courtesy and friendship to fans and competitors alike. as arnie's army followed him on the course, he taught everyone about perseverance and discipline. he taught us that you can be six strokes ahead, and still lose. but you can be strikes -- six strokes behind and still win. as he said, he always made a total effort, even when the odds seemed entirely against me, i never stopped trying. that is how arnold played. and that is how he lived.

with great determination, tenacity, and the will to win. arnold palmer hit his peak at the very moment when television started bringing golf and sports directly into america's living rooms. the blend of the emergence of televised sport and arnold palmer's personal charisma extended calls fan base and the number of -- golf's fan base and the number of americans watching the game. for years, americans stopped participating in the british open, allowing the british to hold on to the notion that they were superior in the game. that was there view of it because they had invented. but when arnie went back to the open, he won it, putting that i get to rest. he changed the game. -- idea to rest. he changed the game. the gold medal is about the work he did to attract young people to golf, a young people

who would never have the opportunity economically or in any way exposure to have access to the game. it is about the children he helped by his support of the march of dimes, patients treated at arnold palmer hospitals. it is about his character on and off the green and the fairway. as arnie has said himself, success in gulf depends less on strength of body than on the strength of mind and character. arnold palmer's success in life is a reflection of his strength in mind, character, and spirit. he is simply the best. for being the best, for his contributions and achievements, it is a privilege to join my colleagues in awarding arnold palmer the highest honor that congress can be still, the congressional gold medal. we do so with great pride and gratitude.

and happy birthday to arnold palmer. [applause] >> ladies and gentlemen, the republican leader of the united states senate, the honorable mitch mcconnell. [applause] >> today we honor a man not just for being one of the great sportsman of all times, but for being one of the great philanthropists of our time.

everyone knows of arnold palmer's exploits on the golf course. you are now aware because others have mentioned it, of his personal generosity of the course. he not only transformed the game of golf, he transformed lives. donating his time and his resources over the years to literally countless good causes. arnold palmer has served as honorary national chairman of the march of dimes. he founded two cancer treatment centers, and he founded the arnold palmer medical center in orlando, home of the arnold palmer hospital for children, and the winnie palmer hospital

for children -- for women and babies. this is a man who captured the imagination of the american people. he won his first major tournament at the age of 28. the other part is worth retelling, too. it begins at the agusta national golf course in 1958. that year, soldiers from a nearby army base were granted free admission and recruited to run the scoreboards. drawn to the charismatic, palmer they followed him from hole to hole, holding up signs and chanting, "go, arnie, go." his -- their efforts helped propel his victory and gave birth to a superstar. after the tournament, one reporter coined the phrase "arnie's army," and a sports phenomenon was born.

arnie's army was a rowdy bunch. at one point, arnie needed state troopers to move through the crowd. his enthusiasm and his following helped transform the sport from a predominantly country club game to one enjoyed by america's growing middle class. in a sport that was high society, hall of fame broadcaster vince scully said that arnold palmer was different from other golfers. he engaged the crowd. he brought them into the trauma of the sport. and they loved him for it -- drama of the sport.

and they loved him for it. when he played poorly or missed a shot, they felt they had played poorly or missed a shot. when he won, they won. in the early 1960's were arnold palmer's most prolific years. during one stretch from 1960 to 1964, he won six majors. over the next several decades, arnold palmer became a national icon. he left an indelible mark on the sport of golf. and through the highs and lows of his long career, arnie's army was always by his side. many remember the emotional scene that played out as arnold took his final walk up the 18th fairway during his 50th consecutive and final masters appearance in april 2004.

there they were, once again. since then, arnold palmer has never stopped giving. he has continued to help, heel, and inspire. he remained as committed to others as ever. today, we honor this good man. he has done so much. not just to mainstream the sport of golf, but he has used his fame to serve others. arnold palmer, for your great contributions to the game of golf, but mostly for your lifetime of service, congress recognizes you today with our nation's highest civilian honor. congratulations, palmer,. -- arnold palmer. [applause] >> ladies and gentlemen, the majority leader of the united states senate, the honorable harry reid. [applause]

>> as an 18 or 19-year-old young man, i came to the realization i was not going to be the athlete of my dreams. i was not big enough, fast enough, or good enough. but i still have those dreams. i get up every morning, with all the things the we do here, unemployment, energy problems -- when i get up in the morning, i get "the new york times," and the first place i go is the

sports page. for a few minutes every morning, i dream of the athlete that i wanted to be. [laughter] and as i have dreamed over the decades, i thought, wouldn't it be great to be able to meet a babe ruth or lou gehrig? or maybe a rocky marciano? joe frazier? but today, i have been able to meet two of the people i have dreamed about going down to that 18th hole. with a good put, i can win this thing. this is a personal privilege for me to be able to meet the great jack nicklaus and to be

here to help honor the great arnold palmer. we know that arnold palmer has played on the finest courses that the world has. he has designed 300 golf courses. seven of them are in nevada, operating now. he has won trophy after trophy after trophy. he has been swinging golf clubs since a little boy of four years old. he was always such a big star. i hope, arnold, you'll remember. you and winnie were traveling across the country.

they stopped a long way from las vegas to have a hamburger and some french fries and a beer. they had very little money. they certainly were not going to gamble. they did not have the resources to do that. a young married couple flipped a roulette wheel and they bet on a double eight. and it hit it. and this is what arnold palmer wrote about this stroke of luck. "$35, talk about a couple of nice kids. we hustled back to our hotel room, -- naive kids. we hustled back to our hotel room. we propped a door against the hotel room -- we've brought a chair against the battelle room door. -- propped a chair against the hotel room door."

in hindsight, he proudly did not need that $35 very much. but imagine how much it must have felt to a young married couple to starting out. we all know that arnold was devoted to winnie, who died of cancer in 1999. he is a family man, with two daughters. i was fortunate to be able to meet kathleen earlier today, and the three children that they have, that they share. i am sure that arnold palmer

would agree that being surrounded by a large and loving family is a greater price the eni trophy -- prize than any trophy. over the last half a century, arnold palmer has amassed an incredible record of wins on the golf course. he has also left his mark in charity. it is exemplary. having just been terrible situation with my wife, we're still working with that with cancer, knowing how devastating it can be, i admire what he has done on the golf course. admire what you have done off the golf course. golf may be famous, but your tireless efforts -- gulf made you famous, but your tireless efforts will make you immortal. congratulations on this highest honor we can bestow on anyone.

we do it today to arnold palmer. [applause] >> ladies and gentleman, the speaker of united states house of representatives, the honorable john boehner. [applause] >> good morning, everyone. welcome, my colleagues, the leaders and the two chambers and my colleagues from the house and senate. certainly arnold and his family and friends. jack and barbara nicklaus, and fellow golfers here and around the world. arnie, i'm going to tell a couple of golf stories and we'll get around to giving you the gold medal. what makes this metal unique is that any american can win it. whether it be a general, an artist, and astronauts, or an athlete. you can start out selling paint and end up receiving congress's

highest honor. not bad for an honest they's work. throughout his life, he's been a model of integrity, passion, and commitment. these are the attributes of a great golfer, and a great american. arne will tell you, it has never been about winning. he won the amateur championship back in 1964. that turning point, as he called it. there was something about the way he walked, attack the ball. asked about that, arnie said, everyone wants to win, but i did not want to lose. i just could not lose.

that drove me harder than anything. someone who understands -- as someone who understands, we have got something there in common. it just so happens that last friday i was at the detroit country club, where that turning point occurred in 1954. i met an 82-year-old young lady who was one of the first people in arnie's army. we saw the same kind of determination during the final round of the 1964 masters tournament, when arnie had the lead going into the 15th hole, par 5. there is a little pond in front of the 15th. it is not that big of a pond. arnie had the lead, but like anyone else, he decided not to

play it safe. he decides to go for the green in two. so the kids that shot with his trademark, in-your-face swing. -- so he takes that shot with his trademark, in-your-face swing. that refusal to quit, refusal to let up, give them hell of spirit is why people always like to watch him. arnie repay is in kind, through gestures as humble as a handshake. arnie is so involved in so many different associations and organizations that bob hope would often say, "arnie has so many irons in the fire that has to play the tour with his woods." he did not set out to change the game, but he did. arnold palmer democratized gulf. and made us think that we, too, could go out and play. made us think that we could do anything, really. all we had to do was go out and try.

my colleagues are sitting in the back. some of my colleagues about the french are betting that boehner will not make it through this. -- in the back are betting that boehner will not make it through this. [laughter] i will not tell the story today

that i really wanted to, about arnold palmer and i -- arnold palmer and i, a moment we had 10 or 12 years ago. i guess i'm going to tell the story. [laughter] it was the first championship, and we were on the practice green. i had played at a little bit country club a couple of weeks before that -- latrobe country club in a couple of weeks before that. i saw arnie on the practice green and told him how much i enjoyed playing at latrobe. arnie starts to talk about his

dad, and what he great man was he -- what a great man he was. if it were not for his father. i got to talking about my dad. my dad owned a bar. how i would not be what i am if it were not for my father. and then arnie and i did this big bear hug and we cried our eyes out. here we were, standing in one of the most venerable places in golf. we were not there talking about

golf. we were not there talking about a lot of other things. the work -- we were there talking about our fathers. a famous sports writer in the early 20th-century wrote some poems, and was a great golf writer. he wrote this poem. "for when the great scorer comes to mark against your name, he writes not that you won or lost, but how you played the game." arnold, you have struck our hearts and minds. today, your government, your fellow citizens are going to strike the gold medal for you. congratulations. [applause] >> ladies and gentlemen, please remain seated for the unveiling

and presentation of the congressional gold medal by members of united states congress. [applause] ladies and gentlemen, mr. arnold palmer. [applause] >> thank you. mr. speaker, members of congress, reverend clergy,

ladies and gentlemen. this is not my first time, so bear with me a little bit. i prepare this wonderful occasion, and i thought about what a thrill it was last time i had the opportunity to address congress in these halls. that was in 1990. on the 100th anniversary of the birthday of president and general dwight eisenhower. i was fortunate enough to have had a warm and rewarding french ship -- friendship with the president, and the last of his years were wonderful. we enjoyed a little golf and a lot of fun. it was a great honor to be able to be with him, a great american. he was that. it was a pleasure for me to

spend some time with him. i have had some feelings about this distinguished award that members of congress -- in fact, particularly proud of anything that the house and senate agree on. [applause] it is humbling to realize that just six athletes had this award, this gold medal award. roberto clemente. jackie robinson. joe louis. jesse owens. recently, or golfing buddy, nelson. i believe that golf and golfers

promotes some sort of human values that symbolize so many americans. such characteristics as honesty, hard work, dedication, responsibility, respect for the other guy, playing by the rules. it is something we do in the game of golf. these things are inherent in the game and among the cardinal principles being taught to young people throughout the country through the first tee program. they're so many people like to think today. for the lack of time, i will pass on that, thank you very much. first, without the efforts of my golfing buddy and friend, joe.

he is a great guy and a good golfer. i discovered when i was playing golf with him recently at the tradition club in california, just be careful about the strokes you give him. hold back just a little. [laughter] congressman is joined by so many in these halls to make it all happen. thanks to the congressional leaders who presented this award, the speaker, minority leader, and to mcconnell and reid and other members of congress here today.

i hope that i can think you properly and tell you how much it means to me to accept this award. i am very humbled. -- thank you very much. [applause] >> ladies and gentlemen, please stand as the chaplain of united states senate gives the benediction. >> let us pray. eternal father, the giver of every good and perfect gift, we put our hope in you. thank you for laudable lives,

and exemplary footprints arnold daniel palmer has left in the sands of time. we are grateful for this congressional gold medal ceremony in his honor. sustained and keep him and his loved ones in all of their tomorrows, making them pour in misfortune and rich in blessings. -- poor in misfortune and rich in blessings. give us wisdom, that we may know the fulfillment that comes from always giving our best. we pray in your merciful name. amen. >> ladies and gentlemen, please remain at your seat for the

departure of the official party. [applause] [captioning performed by national captioning institute] [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2012] >> on c-span today, a discussion about women in leadership with andrea mitchell. then, actors in hollywood executives talk about how politics fits into film and television.

>> the taping system was top- secret. it seemed the only people who knew of its existence were my father, his secretary, and the secret service agent who installed it. that is until president nixon made it famous, and other recording systems were revealed. against the backdrop of watergate, the problem of taping can seem dramatic. but on these tapes, history unfolds in real time in a dramatic way. we hear the intense confrontations of the civil rights movement. >> caroline kennedy joined the discussion on the 1962 recordings of the late president in the oval office. this evening at 7:00 p.m. eastern on c-span-2.

>> more now from the washington post conference on women in leadership. we will hear from andrea mitchell, the white house deputy chief of staff, and others. >> hello. how are you? welcome. >> dr. shirley anne jackson and andrea mitchell. i bet you every single person here has been absence 5:00 a.m. -- has been up since 5:00 a.m.. you are not a rhodes scholar for anything. so you get up of four 30 a.m. every day? many days? often?

what time to get upper -- get up? >> 5:00 a.m.-5:30 a.m. in the late riser. >> and then haole do you work? >> when you are doing the today program, you have to be the last one out at night. so i am there until 10:00 or 11:00. >> so for the two people in america that do not know andrea mitchell, she is the nbc foreign affairs correspondent. she has her own show on msnbc. she covers foreign policy and national security. she is one of the most hard- working women in america, and we are glad she is here.

next to her is shirley jackson, one of the first women to run a top research universities. she was head of the nuclear regulatory commission and the very first black woman to get a ph.d. at mit. amazing. [applause] nancy is the deputy chief of staff in the executive office of the white house. she is an expert in medicare, medicaid and all things health. she has been called the health czar of america. how about that? what a powerhouse. so, we actually have a lot of brainpower up here now. all of you could have done very different things.

and would love to hear how you ended up picking what you did. >> you have the most interesting background. >> i am a fan of violinists. i was raised to be a musician, and my mother still asks me why i am not. but i wrote for the school paper. it was complete serendipity. i was in college at the university of pennsylvania and i went to a meeting of the naacp. this was the 1960's. i was drawn to the college radio station. i began programming classical

music, and then they needed someone to help with the news. it was the height of the civil rights movement, the vietnam war. there were so many issues to become engaged in. after college, i in turn at a local all news radio station, and that was the end of the violin. >> and then you just kept working. >> it was not quite that simple. it was in a day when they did not hire women for newsroom jobs. there were few anger women -- a few anchor women, a few whether women. there were not run-of-the-mill reporters. i was told i could go into advertising or promotions.

i said hire me as a copy boy, which is what the job was called back in the day. it was a very different era. they gave me the midnight-8:00 a.m. shift and said if i proved myself, they would consider me for a promotion. i worked my way up to becoming a reporter. i'm not sure if it was the same for you. i'm sure there were many more barriers in science. >> valedictorian from our local roosevelt school. >> my story is a little different. i collected live bugs. >> how old were you when you

started doing that? >> around 10. we have a crawl space, and i used to do live experiments, putting them in with like and unlike insects. then i discovered mouth. i was pretty good. so i went to mit. >> of course. >> i took a physics course when i was a freshman, and i fell in love with it. eyes darted in electoral engineering. then i took a subject called quantum mechanics. i was listening to hilda's least talk about being told she was

not college material. i was in college and had pretty good grades, but i was told that colored girls should learn a trade, from one of the professors, from whom i got an eight. so i decided to learn a trade and that it would be physics. >> do you get angry? >> i have had my share. one runs into those things, but over time, one has to develop an even s, and what helped me was the following. and did volunteer work in boston city hospital in the pediatric ward. these were very young people who had ailments ranging from

leukemia and orthopedic problems -- there was a little boy who was born without facial features. he had a hole for a nose, no real eyes and mouth. he looked frightening. his parents never came to see him. when i would go, i would visit him. i had time to think, and i began to understand that everyone has a cross to bear. >> does that help you with problems you have yourself? >> because if i am healthy, i cannot get so depressed. in the end, i am motivated by other people. that is why i love being the

president of the university. >> what is the key to motivation? parents want to know. teachers want to know. we want you to motivate these guys out here. >> you have to try to reach them where they are, but you have to help them understand their talents. in the process, they can be personally successful. >> yousuf it is golden when you are willing to marry something you are good at with something you are willing to work at. >> true. >> that would go a long way toward picking the right --

>> by the time the young people come to a university like mine, they are pretty motivated. they have to work hard to get in. they have chosen primarily science or engineering. but you'd be amazed how many of them question where they are going and what they want to do. that is what we are therefore. >> nancy, you went to harvard law school. you went to oxford. you could have done so many things. how did you end up at the white house? >> i could have done many things and i have done many things. i started off as a lawyer. i am from a small town. my mom raised three kids on her own. she did not have a college education, but she is viewed in

me that i could have one. >> how did she do that? >> she had very high expectations and let me know that she wanted me to do very well in school. when i would talk to her about one in to work in the white house sunday or being interested in politics, she would say you have to study hard and get good grades because you will need a scholarship. i cannot afford it, but she never said i could not do it. that was her view. it made me think i could do anything. i went to law school. , when i got 1980's out of law school and was going around to law firms, even at that point, there were not many women in law firms. people would sit me down and and

understand that if we take you into this law firm, you will have to try cases? [laughter] that is what i've wanted to do. i had partners and clients tell me, that was not the team i expected, meaning they did not know there would be a lady lawyer on the case. throughout my career, i have been interested in how to change things for the better, and i have been very fortunate to have lots of opportunities to serve. >> you mentioned your mother. she died when you were -- >> 17. >> and she was such a force in your life. how did that affect you?

>> good and bad. it made me very strong, in a way, because it made it clear that i had no one to depend on but me. >> were you the oldest? >> i was the metal. i had two brothers. in that sense, it made me tough at an early age. at the same time, there were a lot of things i wanted to get done in life, and it made me very driven to succeed. >> if you were a man in your job, how would things have been different? or flippant and say how did being a woman affect your career? >> i was just thinking about

sandra day o'connor not being able to get a job, taking a job as a secretary. this goes back generations. but it is surprisingly still subtle -- still present in subtle ways. everything would have been different for me. and would not have enjoyed the sisterhood that we are. last night on nbc nightly news, this was a first, i think, for us. we of four women who work in our bureau. the last night, all four of us were on the air. we were the four correspondents from washington. that was kind of great.

the realized it happened and sent messages to the others. it was very cool. it would have been a whole lot easier for me. i always felt that i had to volunteer for everything, work weekends. when i covered the reagan white house, i was coming in at the bottom. i was the number four correspondent. i took any chance i could to cover the big stories. i also had to be there every day. i covered the energy crisis, three mile island and the aftermath of the -- of it. >> on tv, we pay so much attention to what women wear and

their hair. is that still true, or is it getting better? >> there was an article -- >> i saw the article in the washington post. and there was a story about the clothes women are wearing, the they are not wearing suits as much. it was only about women. >> i think it is exciting that we're covering major beats in front of and behind the account -- the cameras. we are running broadcasts and making big decisions. we have women in executive roles. >> but do you feel that women have to have blonde, puffy hair? >> in some instances, yes. in my 34 years with nbc news and before that, i was the proud

employee of newsweek on channel 9. i was recruited to come here by newsweek and had two very happy years at channel 9. nobody ever said to me -- well, maybe once. i was wearing something with polka dots that i thought was very chic, and someone said if you ever wear that again, i will murder you. it was way too loud. it was terrible. but it is a visual medium. you have to be reasonably presentable. women are now officially aging on television. thank you very much. women of all sizes and

descriptions are doing very important on-camera work because they are smart. quite to cover hillary clinton. she is a woman. there is enormous chatter about her hair. what do you make of that? >> washington post has a poll about her strong popularity. you have to say that she has

achieved big things in this transition, coming from the senate. when she was running for the senate, it was not really seen that a former first lady could do that job. she became a team player and developed key alliances. she worked on the armed services committee and proved herself. she came in second for the nomination for president and ran a very strong candidacy. i think she has inspired a lot of people and worked very hard. and the rest of her story is yet to be told, but her hair is the least important. >> but i suppose the fact that that is still going on.

>> imagine if she were to pack a hair dresser on the awful plain we are all crime don. then we would be writing about -- the awful airplane we are all crammed on. then we would all be writing about the lavish expense. >> in some universities, only 10% of the teachers in the top four schools for science are female. what can we do to get more women in science, and why is it important? >> well, let's talk about why they are not there, first. what they're not there starts very early in terms of what women are exposed to, what the expectations are. and you know, it is a lot of hard work.

not the people do not work hard in everything, as we have heard, but science is a funny business. you do not always see the limelight. public affirmation is not there. unless one becomes an entrepreneur or something like that. a lot of what happens with women is going to happen within the community within which they work. a lot of times, attitudes and reinforced. i think what needs to happen is that we need to try to reach young women early. we have to affirm them. we have to value science and those who do it a little more. everything we like to play with

and things we use, including in broadcast media, in health care, they're rooted in science, discovery, and technological innovation. there really needs to be an appreciation for science and technology in society. we have to get young women engaged early. we found that young women involved in experimental work, if they are part of a team, it makes a difference. we try to create miniature ships. -- mentor ships. we have to ensure fairness. it is a complex problem, and that is why it is hard to talk about. >> why is it important to have

more women in science? >> first of all, it is important to have more science. we are about to face what i call the quiet crisis. and number of scientists in this country came of age in the post- sputnik era, as i did, and they are beginning to retire. those retirements are going to accelerate during the next few years. the second variable is that we depend very strongly on immigrants. i do not think people understand how much of our science and engineering work force is made up of immigrants, 40% of b.a.t's -- ph.d.'s.

but we go and rage about immigration policy. but the world is changing. people are having opportunities back home. >> of their educated here and then going back. the reason i say it is quiet because you have a group that represents 5% of the war costs that have helped to drive 50% of the gdp growth. >> the value of those people is way outside. >> it is a multiple of the factors. as they retire or do not state it is quiet. >> they need to be light bumblebees. >> about the time we recognize

it takes decades to create a high performing scientist or engineer. i am always the serious ones on these panels. women have a unique perspective. we find women tend to go into fields that relate to those things that touch people the most. they are strongly environmentally and chemical engineers. they making contributions. then we find what we put them together they influence each other. the women learn to think in certain ways that are little different. the men as well begin to develop this perspective. it is fun to watch.

>> you have been at the heart of one of the most divisive and important things going out of america, health care reform. when you are working this hard on something they see it as so vital. some people think it is the worst thing that has ever happened in america. how do you keep going? had you keep down the criticism? >> you have to remember that it was such a polarizing issue. when the president asked me to work on this issue in 2009 it appeared there were republicans as well as democrat sitting down together talking about we do

something to address the problems the gay people access to quality health care. the word -- there were truly bipartisan discussions going on. they were putting together the bills with the senate and the house that had a lot of ideas that came out of republican think tanks. it was based on the massachusetts plan. >> we consulted with a lot to people that worked on it. it was not always so clear that it would be so divisive. i remember feeling dismayed. i was disoriented walking out of the capitol the day that the house voted. i had been there with my oldest son.

i was thinking how wonderful it was going to be that he would go up any in the country or he would think it was strange when he heard that we used to say someone could not get insurance or that it would be priced prohibitively because they have a pre-existing condition are women would have a very different price than men. or that there would be like time limits. that seem like a huge moment of progress for me and to walk out and see people with signs yelling and things like that. i certainly saw that with the president this year. we have a moment where there was another deputy chief of staff, woman, a divorced, what we found

ourselves both on marine one along with our communications director the president looked around and we did not say a thing. that has been a lot of fun. what i saw on the campaign trail was the president was not hearing the story about how insurance companies hurt me around. ist they're hearing now things are getting better. >> what is your favorite part of health care? what is the thing you really wanted? >> i would say excluding people

it does not make any sense to say that someone who has been sick but my mom had cancer could not go out and buy insurance. that was a drag for me. she would go to work even when she was sick in going through chemotherapy she needed to be home because she is worried about losing her job and not being able to be there for us. that was a driver for me. i am proud that the president was willing to risk his career and fight for its. >> how do you when there is all this noise and criticism, how do you stay focused? you feel like what you're doing is the right thing but there is a lot of tension? >> you have to tell yourself it

is important to listen to everyone and be respectful and courteous and try to understand the problems people have with it. in the end you have a job to do. that is to get the best project close to what congress intended. we always need to listen. i learn something every day from talking to someone i do not agree with. >> i have this question. i have to ask my friends here in the media. how do things get so bollixed when clearly people benefit from the various things that she is talking about? some of them are convinced that this is a bad thing.

do we understand? >> let me take another example. >> i'm not trying to take over your job. >> another example for me that was very hard to get my head around and i have to it as a correspondent understand all points of view. it is the 68-31 vote in the senate on disability treaty which is replicating what has been american policy since george herbert walker bush 22 years ago. he negotiated with congress. it was proposed by george w. bush. it was advocated by the john mccain and the wounded warriors and the chamber of commerce and john kerry and bob dole. it was voted down including five

votes from former colleagues of bob dole despite his appearance just out of the naval hospital on a wheelchair. it was all over what the senate foreign relations committee had a rare -- record indicating the black helicopters were not coming. this was not some crazy requirements on america. it had already been the standard. it was the thing that 126 other countries have ratified. it went down. i am still trying to understand the opposition. >> what do you think? >> i think it is fear. that is why we did it is fear. -- it is fear.

someone is able to hike this notion that we are going to one ratifyingernment by citin this treaty that really ratifies our law for decades. we operated just fine. even the chamber endorses it. there is this fear of the government, the fear of being required to be accountable for having health insurance, at the so-called mandate, even though there is help if you need it. >> there is a velocity of information through both social media and also through cable talk radio, television, there is a lot of false information out there. it gets amplified. it is very hard for facts to

catch up. >> what do you tell the consumer of news? how do they get the best information? >> the smart consumer and goes to as in many different sources as possible and the consumer. if you are buying a car you would check out the whole record of that vehicle. take that attitude with you. there is a lot of opinion on television and radio and in the papers. it is interesting. it can be amusing and informative. what it comes to a factual record know where to go. >> we're starting to run out of time. if you could quickly and by yourself. bring the microphone over here. >> i come from europe. everybody talks about

[inaudible] . we need to know. i was wondering with this crazy schedule, how do you balance the family time? the mother is the most important role in the family for a child. the child is the future of everything we talk here. we teed dignity. how can a woman in the united states be independent and dreaming of a career if she has ? child' the united states is way behind

many other countries. many countries to cut even care if a woman has maternity leave. here they have to worry that she has children. thank you. >> does anyone want to take on that? >> i will be happy to do that. i talked about getting up at 4:35 a.m. what i do when i get up, i have a son who's grown up now. when i get up his off living his life. my husband and i have always been in similar careers. that really helps a lot. over the years i actually made choices in terms of what was in the pathway i was on.

what i was doing in order to treat the flexibility for me to raise our son. i do think that is so very important. the one thing i will say about universities is we do have more family friendly policies. we do not just at maternity leave but family leave. if a family adopt a child there is a time they can have off. we will stop the tenure clock for women if they are pregnant. then they can pick up. all of these things are important. with up having a yellen be much more productive. >> would anyone else like to speak? >> i have two young sons who are

not 11 and 13. they were much younger four years ago when i started working with president obama. this has been a real struggle. it has been really difficult. my husband has taken on far more of the load. he was very active even before. if they lost for me and i come, and it is time for it than to go to bed, it is a loss for me. fewer women at the top and a lot of professions. at think there is a lot of self selection. she said you choose to go into different paths because you do not want sacrifice in your life. >> i have not had the blessing of children. my work ethic is strange to say the least.

i am there all the time. i am always near the bureau. my assignment is to be there when there are emergencies around the world. i have colleagues who i grew up with here, judy woodruff with your children, including a child with special needs, and four children at the white house, all these years. other young colleagues in our bureau, young producers and associate producers getting pregnant and having children and coming back. she travels with the president of the time. there are ways corporations are much more flexible in broadcasting now. one of our top executives in york -- in new york is taking on bigger roles.

women as well. this is a tough trade-off. our cultural couple -- cult show -- our culture should be off. >> our son was just entering high school. my husband and i made the decision that we would not move them. this met my husband essentially did everything. as much as i could i went home every weekend. that participated in the social scene. we felt it was important to to public service.

>> i was wondering if being female and a job changes the perspective of other people. >> one of our high school students asking a question. as a woman are you proceed differently? >> i would say yes. i worked in laboratories doing theoretical research for a number of years. >> were there a ton of women there? >> no. the answers to questions. the vice president was a nobel prize winner. he sat down and talked to me saying you can always have this palin affects -- halo effect because when you get up to talk there will be a lot of light on you. people will really watch you. he said he can either have to

make you run away or you can decide to optimize and do the best you can. that is what i have always done. over time it actually build the credentials. i find that sometimes it is hard for men to deal with women who are strong in what they do. >> their running out of time. i want to end what what they wish they had no at 17 that would have made this all easier. part of what andrea said was never allow this to define your goals. decide what you want and go for it. can you say something about that? >> i was very fortunate in that my parents have always told me that i could do anything. i never felt this until i was in my first job and discovered all of the women. if i had known then when i

graduated college i was just 20. the list that i had known that i do everything that i have done. it was always a struggle. if i had more confidence in myself it would have been a lot easier. can i get something for you? it is not as good. we need to stand up for their self. this is like being a woman in

these kinds of careers is so much fun. i have been able to bring along and hire and promote so many young women who have not taken a leadership roles throughout our company. it is a continual process. there have been the careers that some of us have only dreamed of a. >> shirley and has said something similar. aim for the stars. >> my father always said aim for the stars so you can reach the treetops. i thought if i do i get to the stars that quickly i have failed. his point was if you do not a high you will not go far. in bed in the message is that there are steps along the way. you do have to decide the

reviews higher than we are. >> part of what you said as you are working hard. he made a point to say it is also important to take time to relax and enjoy friends. >> i said take time to smell the roses. when she sent me that question it just took me back to when i was 17 and the struggles i was death anding my mom's being on my own. probably not having as much self-confidence as i needed. realizing that i had to put together and manage that. i did a really good job for the next decade of striving and pushing for more professionally.

i wish i had taken more time to travel in some of hitting the books as much. i thing that is what i would do differently. i'm getting some of that from my children now. >> i cannot thank you enough. i so enjoyed this. it is on every day we get this fantastic diversity and brainpower. thank you. we're like a take a short break and be back with our next discussion. [captioning performed by national captioning institute] [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2012] >> each year the british monarch to give a speech. this date back to 1932 with a radio address by king george v fitts. queen elizabeth discusses summer olympics held in london and the diamond jubilee celebrating her 60 years on the throne.

>> this past year has been one of great celebration for many.

enthusiasm which greeted the diamond jubilee was especially memorable for me and my family. it was humbling that so many choose to mark the anniversary. people of all ages took the trouble to take part in various ways and in many nations. perhaps most striking of all was to witness the strength of fellowship and friendship around those who had gathered together on these occasions. we were joined by our family on the river thames as we pay tribute to those who shaped the united candid -- united kingdom's past and future and welcomes a wonderful array of crafts, a large and small from across the commonwealth pie.

on the barges, bridges, banks and rivers, there were people who it taken their places to cheer through the mist, undaunted by the rain. that day was a tremendous sense of common determination to celebrate a triumph over enemies. there's also in evidence at the moment the olympic flame arrived on the shores. it has drawn hundreds of thousands of people on the british isles. it is carried by any kind of -- every kind of deserving individuals, many nominated for their own extraordinary service.

london hosted a splendid summer of sports. all those who saw the achievements and courage were further inspired by the skills, dedication, training, and teamwork of our athletes. in pursuing their own goals, they gave the rest of us the opportunity to share something of the excitement and drama. we were reminded the success of these great festivals depended on an enormous degree to the dedication and effort of an army of volunteers. those of publicly spirited people came forward in the great tradition of all those who devote themselves to keeping other safe, supported, and

comforted. for many christmas is also a time for coming together. for others service will come first. those serving in our armed forces, and our emergency services, and in our hospital whose sense of duty stick them away from family and friends will be missing those they love. those who have lost loved ones may find this day especially full of memories. that is why it is important at this time of year to reach out to beyond our familial relationships and think of those who are on their own. at christmas i am always struck by how thes pirit of together night -- spirit of togetherness is the christmas story.

they were joined by visitors from afar. they came with their guests to worship the child. from that day on he has inspired people to commit themselves to the best interests of others. of year will meme remember that god sent his only son to serve, not to be served. he restored love and service to the center of our lives by jesus christ. it is my prayer this christmas day that this will continue to bring people together to give the best of themselves in service of others. ♪

a carol "in theb leak midwinter" ends by asking the question of how god gave himself to us in humble service. what can i get them as far as i am? if i were a shepherd i would bring a lamb. if i were a wise man i would do my part. the carroll gives the answer. yet what i can i give him, i give my heart. i wish you all a very happy christmas. ♪ in the bleak midwinter, frosty wind made moan earth as hot as iron

water like a stone now a fallen star snow on snow in the blreaeark midwinter -- bleak midwinter blow wind blow. [chorus joins in to sing "in the

bleak midwinter"] >> tomorrow night interviews with two out by members of congress. dan burton talks about his 30 years. kent conrad on his five terms of office. you can see both of those interviews here on c-span beginning at 8:00 p.m. eastern. >> now a conversation on

hollywood's portrayal of politics and policy making in movies and tv shows. among those we'll hear from the crete or the of the show "homeland." this is an hour 20 minutes. >> good evening again. welcome back to the forum. i'm not the one you'll be applauding for. you know we have public events, public forums in our headquarters campus about once a month. and we've had former presidents and foreign ministers and ambassadors and please chiefs. we have never, to my knowledge, had anybody who has ever created, let alone starred in movies or tv series until tonight. and we have michael linton to

thank for that. michael is co-chair politics aside 2012 just like 2010 and he, of course, is a trustee so we're delighted to have him. he'll moderate tonight. and with him and i'll ask the panel to come forward. howard gordon and michael sheen. >> figs of all, thank you for being here this evening and thank you for being here on a friday night. i don't do this for a living so you're going to have to fill in in the middle. let's start off with we all know the wonderful shows and movies you've been involved with, many of which have overlapped with politics from

"homeland," "the queen", so the first thing i'd like to ask -- i'd like to talk about the shows "homeland" and "the queen." where did those come from in the first place? >> "24" came from a basic idea, two writers. joel said it was an in the shower idea. i'm thinking about television and in television there are 22 or 24 episodes in a season, thinking about the number 24 and said could you do an entire series of television over the course of one day.

and i was an executive at fox at the time and when he came in and said this to me and that was an intriguing notion could you do an entire series of television over one day real time. then he laid out the barest bones of a story that would support that. it's a guy day of the california primary first an african-american was shot at the white house and he got word of an assassination attempt and it's his job to stop it, meanwhile his teenage daughter goes missing, that was sort of the beginning. i had zero faith he was going to be able to write it well but it was worth the price of admission to see and that's where it all began. and howard came into "24" beginning with episode two and carried it all the way to the end and wrote many of the greatest episodes and brought the series to a close in its last episode. but it began with an idea in the shower just thinking about the form of television.

>> it was actually the day before a wedding so it wasn't until terrorism was something that came as a second integration. >> i never heard the day before the wedding version of it. >> because it didn't work as it turned out. >> then, of course, the show went on the air and got ordered in the spring of 2001 and then the pilot was made and finished and we ordered it then and went

on the air in september of 2001. and so we ended up delaying the premiere by a week and went on two or three weeks after 9/11. >> it certainly changed the way we viewed the show. it's interesting that it itself pat ro moin wasn't born out of 9/11 which a lot of people think, but it was midwifed by it and viewed through it. relevant to tonight's conversation is some of the issue that is became relevant to the show like how do we prosecute the warren terror. jack resonated with the audience because whatever failure of intelligence allowed 9/11 to happen, jack was that character, filled in the gap and equally problematic not only were the terrorists but were the bureaucracies that allowed it to happen.

as that story became more complicated, jack became a darker character and through the lens of guantanamo the story he became less heroic character and more complicated certainly. >> and "homeland"? >> that was based on an veil series. and the show came to me from an israeli company. that one was a far more specific translation from the original. that was about two prisoners of war who are traded after 17 years of captivity to israel where it was kind of a rip van winkle drama. it dealt with substantially the idea of what is the price of a returning soldier who has been in captivity and something that was specific to that country and to that culture. and when it came our way, alex and i who is my writing partner

on it and he runs the show, knew that was going to be a -- it was not something that would be relevant in the way it was presented in his original it ration. >> it's a very culturally resonant story in israel and everyone has a personal connection to the idea of p.o.w.'s and people missing. here guys knew it would be an anomaly if we found a soldier suddenly alive in afghanistan or iraq. so i think it was the anomalous nature of it that led them to this story. >> what was amazing to us and what was relevant is the idea

that nowhere on american television had a returning soldier returning from war been portrayed. and obviously in very circumstances in the case of our character, but that was something that really interested us but it felt like a good way to dramatize a lot of the questions we answered on "24" in a more knew answer fashion ten years after 9/11. a lot of questions that weren't clear then are even more complex now. what do we have to be afraid of? what's the price of our security? and these are the characters we created to ask those questions. >> and michael, with "the queen" what prompted that?

it came from another deal. it was a trilogy of films. the deal was a film made for british television about the supposed deal that was made between tony blair and brown before they got into power with the labor party. and the deal, the first one came along at a time when the idea of portraying very prominent public figures certainly within the realm of politics nobody did that unless it was sketch shows, comedy that kind of thing. the idea of actually depicting presidents, the idea of doing that is you can't take it seriously, that kind of thing. so the idea that peter morgan who is a well respected writer but hadn't found his voice up to that point.

it wasn't until he wrote "the deal" he found his groove. having him on board and having proper producers behind it gave it a seriousness and a weight that nothing had had before that was looking at these sort of people. so "the deal" was on tv. i was offered the part and no one knew what to expect. everyone expected it to fail and not work. and i think through a combination of factors, the tone was right and it was acceptable and suddenly once the tone was acceptable and people were able to accept watching a drama which includes tony blair in bed.

as soon as you take that seriously it opens an entire new universe of politics, history and opened up a can of worms as well. but the fact that that worked so well and was so accepted and respected and celebrated when it came out, because it did very well. that led to "the queen" and the possibility with that subject matter. we didn't expect that many to be excited about the supposed deal between blair and brown before they went into government. but about the queen and the family and lifting the veil. you thrift veil and this is an extraordinary world we've never seen inside of. so "the queen r queen" came directly from the deal.

>> what did tony blair think of it? >> next question. >> i want to know president obama said "homeland" is his favorite show. my question is when you're dealing with live, real people who you are portraying or in the case of "homeland" or "24" when you're trying to deal with agencies that you are representing, what is that interaction like? we were talking a little bit in the room next door, maybe you can answer michael, how is tony blair's perception changed as a result of those films or the queen's perception changed in the minds of the public then we can talk about "homeland" and "24"?

>> there are many things that you realize that you are working with when you do a film or a tv show that is -- has so much political emphasis. and one of the things is inevitably you come up against the agenda of people in terms of the agendas they have for looking at and judging politicians and public figures. which in my experience people tend to be more comfortable looking at things black and white and you want people to fit into a certain box so you can judge them against other people and make a choice and all that. and of course the first duty of an artist is to go beyond black and white and become three

dimensional and make it real and make it contradictory because that's what human beings are and make it vulnerable which goes in the face of the way people want to view politicians. and you realize very quickly dish know when it was announced that we were doing "the queen" having done "the deal," i would have prominent people in the industry saying things to me like i'm looking forward to you giving it to blair. that's not really what i'm going for. and you realize there is a really strong agenda here and everyone projects on to you their own politics which and once it came out i realized quickly if we did the job well, people would still think we had done a hatchet job or we had done a great booster job for these people.

but people project on to it what they want to see. people who are anti-blare and people problare we did a problair perform sons people read in what they want to read in. in terms of the actual people, there was a huge amount of suspicion. >> on the part of the tony blair? >> yes, the new labor movement, a big part of it were about controlling the media and making sure everyone's message,

that delicate balance between the media and their policies, the idea of this rogue group that was going to color people's view of them that they have no control of was difficult for them. at the same time blair was -- subsequently it's hard to pin down what blair thinks abet because he says he's never watched any of them which is not true. when i did meet him he newsome things better than i did. i understand he has to say he hasn't see them. he doesn't want to answer questions. that's fair enough. but i suspect that there is a certain amount of -- that he's quite proud that it's being portrayed like that and there have been a few films made about it. and on the other hand he's suspicious. when i did meet him it was a push me pull you relationship we had. on the one hand it was fascinating meeting someone who played him and knew a lot about

him and at the same time anything he said or did i might be using. when i met him i met him just before we did the third one and he knew that we were making it and i actually met him at murdock's house which i was very kindly invited to by mr. murdock's wife who thought it would be entertaining to put me and tony blair together. which it was. and i thought this is probably -- i had had a few chances to meet him which i had pushed down because i try to stay away from everyone i was going to play. but i thought at this point i really want to get a smell of it. i want to know what he's like on an animal level and how he moves the air and how people react and what smell does he give off which really helps. but when i got there we had an initial chat again where he said he hadn't seen anything.

and then talked about certain things. and then his chief of staff and the lady who headed up his foundation were there and they had been briefed to keep me away from him because the rest of the evening they were on me. but they got progressively more and more fluid. theyn't drinking and started telling me incredibly discreet things about him which we used. but one thing i was going to say, the extraordinary thing is each time i played blair i would go back and look at any documentaries that came out since the last one.

when we came to do special relationship a major documentary had been made because he wasn't in power anymore which was interesting and covered a lot of the areas we covered. but when the interviewer asked blair so the first time you met the queen, i believe as prime minister t morning after you won the election i believe that you're meeting was slight awkward that a few things happened that weren't protocol. do you remember what happened. he says well what do they do in the film? so blair used the film that we had made up as a way to answer that question. so it's an extraordinary reversal of things. >> howard and david, so with both shows, with "homeland" now and with "24" in the past, were there actions with various government agencies particularly with terrorism with yourself and those agencies and did they respond at all to what was going on on in the show?

>> no. they really were -- the show is so fundamentally preposterous, the ood that so much could happen and have a middle and end in 24 hours fundamentally crazy and "homeland" deposit that is the cia is operating on our soil which as far as i know isn't happening. but there is emotional truth to the characters and our relationship with the military and counter terrorism agencies. they were fans. they became fans of the show and they just kind of, we got calls from people from the pentagon and from politicians. both shows were done and conceived without cooperation

and without any purported. connection to how they actually run. it was never part of the promises. i've attempted some shows that have not seen the light of day with cooperation of government agencies. i worked for a long time on a show with the f.b.i. and also with nasa, negotiate of which probably not coincidently came to fruition. but these shows "homeland" -- "24" made up it's own organization c.. the u. to avoid it and with "homeland" it was a step towards reality so it does elude to the cia. but -- >> our relationship with the military was interesting because obviously these agencies want to keep arm's length.

and once they became fans -- i think it was that simple, they just enjoyed it and felt this is portraying when we did portray a general or soldier, the military became cooperative. so we had a pentagon lie ace son. it got to the point we said we need a couple of f-16s they said sure. it got great. a lot of production value where it came. i think obviously they thought their public affairs and their public image through that show -- >> at the you same token i was visited by the dean of west point a few years later when there was some cry that some

investigators in iraq and in afghanistan were being influenced by the content of the show and that their interrogation techniques were being informed by -- >> let me ask a question or finish your thought. >> no, i'll go back to it. >> i ask the question on the issue of terrorism in this country, "homeland" and "24" may or may not have had an affect on it. torture is a very, very prominent component of the show. and to what extent do you think that film and that show entered into the debate particularly under the bush administration? >> i think in "24" there was no -- the idea and it was promoted in certain articles and i think there was a conflation of politics because joel who created the show is a conservative.

the affiliations on the staff were from the far left to the far right. there was no agenda on public policy. it is absurd. which isn't to say that if there was an issue f in fact our content was affecting the behavior of interrogators in the field, even if it was.50% were taking 245eur cues from jack bower, there was a system i can problem. the fact this is a television show, it is a television show, but it did -- and again the fact that "24" became the political football that it became for a

while anyway i think was a valuable thing. >> it was a key article in the new yorker that jane mayor wrote at the height of "24." it was a look at the terrorism issue and its affect on the military. and i think she's fundamentally a washington military journalist and hadn't done a lot of stuff in television popular culture. and it was sort of an interesting moment for the show. and i'm not sure whether it was helpful or harmful to the show. >> i think it was harmful. somebody at a party said i used to watch the show until i found out it was promoting torture. that -- they seem to approximate

mate some sort of logical conclusion but they don't. >> you were saying before that popular -- one of the things that make it popular is people are able to read into it what they want. and the politics, good complex story telling, the politics are a little hard to figure out. >> as you said before, the idea if you can offend everybody, you've done your job. the fact that rush limbaugh can love a show and bill clinton can love it too. in "unthinkable" did the issue of torture become part of the debate? >> that's i